Homeward Bound

We have been safely home in North Carolina for over a week now. The flight was amazing, and our kids were champions the whole way home. God is good! Here are a few last pics from our last moments in Berlin.
We skyped with our cousin Brody and Aunt Christine before we left. This was a great way to stay connected to our friends and family back in the States, it also gave us a chance to make funny faces across the miles.

Our last Tuesday was spent with the Interns and this wonderful family, the Elmericks, at the lake. They were one of the reasons we were in Berlin this Summer. They oriented us to the culture, the city and treated us like family while we were there. They were great and we will (and do) miss them dearly.
There was a cool water slide for the kids and the adults at this lake. Here's Maggie on the kiddie one.
There was splashing and swimming.
And ice cream eating too. It was a lot of fun even though the water was freezing (according to my standards I should say).
Maggie's little imagination sky rocketed while we were in Berlin. Mostly due to the fact that we had limited toys and ample time indoors while Henry napped. I must say my imagination soared as well as I looked for new activities to enjoy with my energetic three year old. Pictured above is Maggie playing "barbies" as she called it, which entailed one barbie and a dozen miscellaneous toys (and boxes) she gathered from happy meals, airlines, the Elmericks, care packages and the family center.
The kids enjoyed watching the airplanes in the airport in Berlin and in our connecting airport in Munich. We had such a fun Summer. It was hard work at times, but well worth it. We will miss you Germany!
Henry may have been the youngest child on our flight from Munich to Charlotte, and so the lucky little guy got to enjoy his very own bassinet. And, yes he actually did sleep in it.

Hunt/Dirks Reunion take 2

While we're here in Europe we thought we'd make the most of the fact that we are only one country and no oceans away from the ever lovable Hunt family. So, a trip was in order and this time it was the Hunts turn to come to us here in Berlin. After we were reunited on Friday and had spent an afternoon at the neighborhood playgrounds and streams, we then chose to explore Berlin on Saturday starting with a double decker bus ride in the rain. Never have I seen such an excited little Sambo. We sat on top of the bus, in the front, so you can see why.
We quickly stood in front of the brandenburg gate during a thunderstorm, with sparse bolts of lightening streaking across the sky, for a picture. Sadly, there was no time for Melissa and I to take a picture by the hotel where MJ dangled little "blanket" from the balcony of his hotel suit (at the hotel to our right). And a side note to all: You know you have a great friend when you can both agree that this would be an excellent idea and definitely something worth capturing for posterity. Tragically this did not happen.
We sought shelter from the rain in the Riechstag and the kids enjoyed the view from the top.
We took charge over Sam so the Hunts could actually listen to the auditory guided tour.
Then off to the sony center for lunch by the fountain.
Then off to the wall memorial.
And, then double date night!!!
Schnitzel und bier!
After we failed at finding a boat to rent for a cruise down the river, nachos, margaritas and ice cream seemed like a perfect way to wrap up the evening. (P.S. McCanns thought of you during our dinner at Tex-Mex and remembered the sweet nachos we had when we were in Honduras).

Tyler took panoramics to a whole new level by including himself in his own masterpiece (not using a self-timer). Pretty clever I know.
Super Dad!
We heart the Hunts, thanks for coming all the way to Berlin!

P.S. I am updating this post before the Hunts have even arrived back in Prague! How about a cyber-pat on the back?

this and that...

These are just some pictures from the past week I thought I'd share. This first one is really special to me because it shows a part of my summer that I have thoroughly enjoyed. These three guys are our interns, you may remember them from earlier posts. Well, they are three college guys that gave up their summer to come to Berlin and work hard. They have been selfless in so many ways and loved us and others so well, and they are really just a fun bunch to be around. On this particular occasion we had just finished our weekly "stammtisch" and then sang some worship songs together. It was such a sweet time, and although yahtzee night and WM finale stammtisch were fun, being in a community with my new and cherished brothers in Christ and worshiping our Lord beats all.
Tyler and I did finally have our Anniversary dinner, but we didn't end up in the TV tower like we thought we would. Turns out there was a two week wait to go there, so instead we headed over to Museum Island and enjoyed some fine cuisine and some BFF time by the canal.
We took a picture of our dessert with my Dad mostly in mind, because we knew he would love the two dessert selections we chose, German cheesecake and apfel streudel...YUM!
And, then back at the homestead during any given bath night, but particularly last week, this little guy found himself rather sudsy.
And, finally here is Henry in his new favorite head gear. Thanks to our ever so generous neighbors Jule, Grischa and particularly Joscha (Henry's bud), Henry was able to discover his new passion in life, biking. We borrowed their road bike for the weekend and to say Henry loved it would be an understatement. He screamed bloody murder every time we took him off of it, much to my embarrassment. But, I should have seen this coming seeing as how he is constantly trying to sneak a ride any time a bike is left vacant in the playground or anywhere. We can safely say that Henry has a need for speed.
Here's a better picture of us with the Interns from the left we have Seth, Tyler, Henry, Andrew, Joseph and Me and Maggie.

the start of something good...

Yesterday we headed on yet another train ride to a place called Wittenberg. Perhaps you have heard of it? It's a small little town where Martin Luther changed history by nailing the 95 thesis to some church doors in an effort to reform the church. However the church was reluctant to embrace Marty's suggestions and thus the Protestant Reformation was officially begun on October 31, 1517. We've wanted to visit here all summer and it was exciting to finally get there and experience the history that erupted in this small town so many years before our arrival.
The train station sign.
Here is the door, not the original one, but the place where the original door used to be. Does this make sense? The original one burned down, not sure how..sorry.
Tyler and Maggie paid a euro to climb to the top of the church tower, all 1,000 steps that is, and were able to take some beautiful pictures of Wittenberg.
The Dirks with Martin, inside the church.
This is the town square, the area is prone to flooding so those big towers in the background are actually grain elevators to keep the grain dry when the area floods. (Don't quote me on the grain...but some sort of crop).
Saturday also happened to be our 6th year anniversary, and so we enjoyed a private lunch together in the heart of the city. Or...
We would have liked to have that lunch, but we had these two rascals with us. But, thankfully the restaurant had some fun kids toys for the little ones to play with while we waited for our food. But, don't feel sorry for us we plan on having our "anniversary" date this Tuesday at a nice restaurant in the TV tower.
After lunch we visited a Luther museum and saw some Luther stuff, like the original Bible that he translated into German. So, all people could read the Word of God, this was really cool. So thankful for men like Luther that the Lord has used to bring us closer to Him.

And, of course we can't go anywhere in Germany without sampling the local ice cream shops.These are the beautiful flowers my hubby got me for our 6th year celebration. What a good man, and not just because he gets me pretty arrangements. I have married the man I pray for my son to be, a man with a heart like Davids, a man with a heart like Gods. He challenges me and our family each day to grow and become better and more like Christ. He does this through example and word. I see his love for our King and I see his love for me and our children and my heart bursts. He loves so well and so completely those the Lord has given him to lead. July 10th 2004 I made one of the best decisions of my life, I love you babe!

4th of July

As it turns out they do have the 4th of July in Germany, the only thing is they don't celebrate America. I know weird right? So, a few of us American folk got together and invited a few Berliners to join us and headed to the park for the afternoon to celebrate the USA.
Maggie says a prayer for America while holding a sparkler...talented eh? (FYI she's not really praying just in case you thought she was truly that spiritual)
It's nearly impossible to find America flags here but a friend of ours made these little American flags on her computer and stuck them on top of all muffins she brought to the picnic. And here's the kicker she's German, isn't that awesome?
This was a playground we had never been to before and it was pretty sketchy looking complete with this incredibly steep slide. This is Henry riding it on a piece of cardboard, the little guy flew down and we thought he was going to be scarred for life, but as soon as he got to the bottom he shot up and ran back towards the top of the slide to go again with a huge grin on his face. Here he is taking it easy in the sand.

Maggie shows her patriotism.
Since I couldn't find any flags I made a cake flag with yummy blueberries and strawberries..

Finally here is a picture of my kiddos decked out in there American garb courtesy of Grandma Z. Thanks for the outfits...can you tell I got in front of the TV to take this pic?

Potsdam

Last Saturday we took a 45 minute train ride to a little place outside of Berlin called Potsdam. We really knew nothing about it except that it is a nice tourist spot with lots of castles and history. We arrived in Potsdam at around 9:30am and proceeded to get ourselves lost until about lunch time. After lunch we finally got the hang of it and were able to see the main street behind the Great gate, pictured above. It was a lot of fun, because as it turns out getting lost in Germany is a lot more exciting than getting lost in the US, because it is still culturally new and different to us.
We came across a nice refreshing fountain after lunch as well. It was hot and here you can get in all the fountains, there aren't any coins in the fountains and all you need is your birthday suit to join in on the fun. I also had some bubbles in my bag and that was fun to play with as well.
Happy to be in the fountain coolness.
Daddy and Henry enjoyed it too.
This is one of those main streets I was talking about earlier. It kind of reminds me of Charleston, the way everything is so quaint and clean and you can walk and walk and still experience the charm.
This is how Maggie and Henry roll.
One of many castles in Potsdam (but one of the only ones we saw thanks to our navigation skills).
One of the quaint little homes we saw on our tour before lunch.
The train ride home was a little crazy. We may have stayed just a bit too long in Potsdam. But, it was a fun day and we are glad we went.